Top design trends for your home
The COVID-19 pandemic has provided a renewed sense of home and community for many. After months of sequestration within your home, however, you might also need fresh scenery – both outside and inside your residence. Design trends provide alluring sources of inspiration for updates, whether it’s a simple splash of color or creating a whole new addition.
My family’s company, Simms Development, has found success for over 60 years in building maintenance-free communities. A major trend we have found is that both first-time home buyers and empty nesters enjoy the maintenance-free lifestyle. We have also found that uniquely thoughtout floor plans, functionality and styles that work with the buyer in mind is a trend and we and continue to build with this trend in mind. Also, passive amenities in our communities like private dog parks, community fire pits and walking paths are very appealing and do not require regular costly maintenance.
Here are a few ideas NAHB members are noticing across the country:
■ Have fun with
color. One the most popular areas to remodel is the kitchen. Gone are the stark-white cabinets, countertops and backsplashes. Instead, today’s designers are opting for on-trend deep blue and cool aqua tones, as well as dark woods and new, colored textures. Add a pop of intrigue to your kitchen
through a bright backsplash, colorful kitchen island or a dropped ceiling with rich wood tones. ■ Warm and cool color insertions don’t have to stop at the
kitchen either. Cool color choices — think grays, blacks and blues — add a modern aesthetic, while warm colors — especially wood elements — have a traditional appeal. The two combined create a look that is both dramatic and luxurious, yet also comfortable and homey, anywhere in the home.
■ Another fun idea for 2020? Wallpaper.
Not only can it be an inexpensive way to personalize
a home, there are so many options to choose from — both in color and texture, as well as low- or no-volatile organic compound (VOC) — to create a vibrant, healthy home. ■ Get creative with
storage. Today’s minimalist culture (thank you, Marie Kondo) lends itself to new trends in storage that are not only simple, but artistic. Open kitchen shelving or a mix of open and traditional cabinetry for upper cabinets, for example, provides practical storage solutions and added visual interest. Other areas that can benefit from this approach include wine cellars or
under-stair displays that purposefully blend into the room. ■ Connect the outdoors and indoors.
Indoor/outdoor connections enhance livability — and look sophisticated, too. New technologies and increased availability of glass walls, pocket doors and large windows can create a seamless transition, both visually and physically.
■ Visual connections such as large-format windows can also help.
Floor-to-ceiling window walls and “glass box” style rooms are trending in all corners of the country, and in all neighborhoods, from urban to rural.
Above all else, make it yours. Today’s homeowners want a home that reflects their tastes. Simple examples include nontraditionally shaped, colored or otherwise unique hardware in spaces such as the kitchen and bathroom, as well as elements like distinctive stair rails, light fixtures and switch covers in more high-traffic areas. For more information, contact the Home Builders Association of Dayton at info@hbadayton.com, find information on all residential construction experts at HBADayton.com, and follow the HBA on all social platforms: @HBADayton.